Are you obsolete? Why not?

Posted on July 23, 2007 by Rick Turoczy

Maybe being a dinosaur isn't so bad?Your ultimate goal–at any job–should be achieving your own obsolescence. When you achieve that, you’ve really succeeded.

You should be extinct.

Not only that, but you should plan to be extinct. You should strive to be extinct.

You should be gone. Remember that.

That, and that alone, should be your only goal as an employee.

“What cockamamie bull is he shoveling now?” I hear you asking. Bear with me.

I say everyone should be working to make themselves obsolete because, in all honesty, it’s what’s best for you. And it’s what ‘s best for the business.

What are some ways you could be working to make yourself obsolete?

  • If you’re a manager, you should be working to help your employees take your job. Or, better yet, leapfrog you and eliminate your job.
  • If you’re part of a heavy handed process, you should be working to refine that process, restructure that process. Heck, even completely automate that process.
  • If you’re building something that shouldn’t be built, you should be working to convince the business to stop building it.
  • If you’re the lynchpin in the creative process, you should be capturing and codifying that creative process in ways that would allow it run more efficiently without you.
  • If you’re required to be at the ready to solve a recurring problem, you should be figuring out how to solve that recurring problem, automatically. Or, better yet, preventing that problem from happening in the first place.

I know, I know. “That’s easy to say for you, sitting up there in your ivory tower. I’ve got mouths to feed.”

I’m not advocating your losing your job. I’m simply advocating your working to eliminate the current you.

Because if you do, one of two things will happen:

  1. You’ll fail. But as you fail, you will gain invaluable experience that will make you better…. OR
  2. You’ll succeed. And as you succeed, you will show how brilliant you really are. When your brilliance is more obvious to those around you (because I know that it is already obvious to you), you’ll get a new job. A better job. A job you like a whole heck of lot more than this job. Either at your current company or at another company.

Either way, you’ll be moving yourself forward. What have you got to lose?

Posted in Career, Change, Success | 6 Comments

Applying the "Sustainable" philosophy to business processes

Posted on July 22, 2007 by Rick Turoczy

Creating a sustainable processI’m a big fan of sustainability.

I’m, admittedly, not as good at as I could be. But I’m constantly working to get better. I’ve been recycling for nearly 20 years (yes, kids, there was once a time when people didn’t recycle), I purchase clean energy, I shop for organic goods, I frequent Portland’s veritable plethora of farmers’ markets, and I’m trying to seriously consider other options for lowering my footprint in terms of my affecting the environment.

Part of it is being a parent. Part of it is just being smart.

And, again, I’m not the best. I’m not holier-than-thou. I’m just trying.

But thinking about sustainability has me thinking about the philosophy of sustainability.

Reduce, reuse, recycle. Lower your impact on the earth. Reduce your footprint.

And that has me thinking, why don’t we apply this same concept to business processes?

I’m not talking about sustainable business practices. Those are completely necessary, and quite frankly, should already be well underway.

I’m talking about applying that philosophy to the inner workings of the business, itself, as if the business were an ecological entity.

What if we, as employees, tried to lower our footprint on the business processes. Tried to build sustainable processes that would last, not only for our employment, but for the next seven generations of employees holding your position?

What if we reduced our impact to the bare essentials?

What if we looked to other departments to reuse or recycle their processes, rather than creating our own? What if we were to forego the latest and greatest flash-in-the-pan confabulation and, instead, pursue something that might be slightly more expensive yet better for the business in the long-term?

How would we do this? Honestly, I don’t rightly know. I’ve just started pondering it, myself.

But I thought I’d raise the question and see if anyone had some smart answers.

Can you create a sustainable business process?

Posted in Change, Corporate Culture, Process, Sustainability | 1 Comment

How Much is a Referral Worth?

Posted on July 21, 2007 by Toby Lucich

Think about itTough question, and one that shouldn’t be answered too quickly.

A referral, a reference, a recommendation – these things just happen on the fly, over casual lunches and at backyard barbecues. At little league. Over beers. So easy for someone to make.

This is how service people get work. Earn a living. Do a good job, people notice, and ask who made it happen. This is easy for housekeepers, and lawn guys, a bit less clear for professional types. Hairstylist? Good news – your work speaks for you.

But if you’re a knowledge worker, you might want to reconsider how you handle the receipt of a referral.

“Expert” opinions and associated referrals carry much more weight. If I can’t fathom the quality of the work, it feels like a black box of voodoo and magic – be it a CPA, a programmer, or a realtor. I have to rely on what I can understand, whether it’s timely delivery of results or bad news about late deliverables, all I can really wrap my hands around is how well the professional communicates progress.

But here’s my point (took a while, thanks for bearing with me): when you fail to perform on a colleagues referral, it looks bad for both the person that gave me the name, and the professional that blew it. And the crux is, it doesn’t matter if the client was sloppy, if they were confusing, or if they doddled about – they were still the client.

Pick your favorite saying – “client is always right,” “you never get a second chance to make a good first impression,” whatever. These became cliche’ for a reason, and understanding this early on saves a world of embarrassment and uncomfortable discussions.

(Keep this in mind when you are asking for referrals as well – if you can’t handle the bandwidth, don’t think you’ll be able to follow through, or don’t have your heart in it, you are putting a relationship at risk.)

When we provide that “expert” referral, we put our own reputations on the line. This is equally true inside the corporate machine as it is outside as an independent contractor.

  • Inside, you still draw a paycheck when you blow it, but you’ve soaked up both goodwill and a share of the political capital that your “sponsor” had with the client you failed. Blow a couple, and be prepared to move on or settle into the basement.
  • Outside, your current paycheck is at risk, and the funnel that you saw on the horizon can dry up overnight. You can go from opportunity to busy to bust in a pretty quick cycle, and lose the connective tissue that helped launch you as an independent in the first place.

Like all professionals, I’ve certainly blown up my share of clients through poor expectations management. And while I can’t tell you exactly how much it costs to under-perform, I can definitely confirm that this is not a career building strategy.

Posted in Accountability, Can vs. Should, Failure | 1 Comment

Does that embarrass you?

Posted on July 20, 2007 by Rick Turoczy

Holding you backWe, as a species, are big fans of veneer.

No, not Vermeer. Although Girl with a Pearl Earring is a beautiful piece, I must admit. The enigmatic nature of her countenance, at times, rivals even that of the Mona Lisa. Don’t you think?
Wait a second. Where was I going with this? Oh yes. Veneer.

We like to hide reality under artifice. We like to cover up the bad with the good. To make things look better than they are.

It’s a Wizard-of-Oz, man-behind-the-curtain sort of thing.

And business is no different.

We may plod along with our archaic filing systems. Our poorly organized desktops. And our inefficient processes. Only to hide those broken and ugly elements with a fine shell of veneer.

Look at how pretty my brochure is. Look at how well the Web site functions. Look at what I delivered, not how I delivered it.

But fact of the matter is, it all matters. And the journey is as important as the destination.

Call it “getting the house in order.” Call it “sharpening the saw.” Call it whatever euphemism you like. I don’t really care what you call it. I just care what you do about it.

So, take a look at your inner workings, not just your results. Take a look at your processes and ask, “Does this embarrass me?”

If you had to show that process to someone else or hand your work to someone else or explain to another party how you do what you do, would that embarrass you?

That’s a problem. And, believe me, it’s grinding on you. It might not be obvious, but subconsciously it’s weighing on you. Trust me.

So take some time to step back and assess.

Does that embarrass you? Then fix it.

Posted in Growth, Involvement, Management, Performance | 2 Comments

Bad is easy, good is difficult

Posted on July 18, 2007 by Rick Turoczy

Why, why, why is it so much easier to be bad than good?

I think one of the primary reasons is that there are a wide variety of excuses for being bad (“I didn’t have time,” “I’ve been meaning to do that,” “Someday…,” “I didn’t realize…”). When was the last time you used an excuse for being good?

It’s even easier to be mediocre than it is to be good.

And don’t even get me started on being great. Lots o’ effort needed there to be sure.

So, unlike previously whiny and thoughtful months, More than a living has been relatively quiet lately.

That’s bad. And that’s easy.

So let’s put a little effort into being good, shall we? I think we shall.

Even a little effort will make it better than bad.

Posted in Failure, More than a living | Leave a comment

10,000 spam comments

Posted on July 6, 2007 by Rick Turoczy

Carting out the spamA bit of an editorial note on a not-so-happy milestone.

We officially launched More than a living roughly 8 months ago. Today, we have received our 10,000th spam comment.

To put that in context, that’s:

  • Roughly 27 to 1 for spam to actual comments
  • Just shy of 50 spam comments for every post
  • About 40 spam comments per day

This post sponsored by Akismet, which has protected us from the bulk of it.

Posted in More than a living | 1 Comment

Top 10 mistakes made when applying for the CSS gig

Posted on June 28, 2007 by Rick Turoczy

Going a wee bit battyAhem.

It’s been awfully quiet around here, as of late. And for that, I apologize.

Everyone is busy. Busy busy busy.

But I’m rarely, if ever, too busy to chat with you, gentle reader. So why don’t we get to it?

When I posted that we needed CSS help for Kumquat, I expected to get a few portfolios in the door. Maybe a dozen or so.

Oopie.

What I did get–over the past week or so–was well north of 200 portfolios. And I worked to respond to each applicant who emailed me, personally. Because I think that’s important. Crazy, I know.

But once all of those folks were in the door. That’s when the more difficult task began: selecting a few that were the cream of the crop.

Due to the sheer glut of resumes and portfolios, I quickly built a list of automatic disqualifiers. A list of prevalent mistakes. No matter how good the person seemed as a designer or a coder or a human being, these things got them tossed on their ear.

Now, I fully admit, I may have lost some really good talent. But that was a risk I was willing to take.

And that’s when it dawned on me: this tempest-in-a-teapot was a perfect micro case study for any job application. Oh my. Well, when that dawned on me, I realized it was my duty–nay my moral obligation–to share this information with you.

So how did I make the cut? Well, for this CSS gig, these were the top ten reasons I rejected an application:

  1. Didn’t read the instructions.
    There were some folks who never sent me an email about the position. If the applicant can’t follow that simple instruction, how can I be confident they will follow my guidance on the development?
  2. Pitched me as a generalist.
    “I am capable of coding HTML, PHP, ASP, Perl, JavaScript, CF, SQL, Flash, CSS, BASIC, COBOL, FORTRAN, and VAX/VMS. I can handle your hosting, search engine optimization, online ad buys, public relations, transportation needs, and coffee-making.” I don’t care. I think I was pretty clear about what we needed.
  3. Didn’t have a last name.
    This may seem a little weird, but I don’t hire people who don’t have a last name. So, yes, it’s true, neither Cher, Madonna, nor Cedric the Entertainer will be coding my CSS. Sniff. My loss. You see, I use Highrise to manage my contacts, and when I fire an email over there and just get one name for the contact? It kinda makes me mad. No, not kinda. Word to the wise: When you’re applying by email, make sure your email address has the necessary info attributed to it. Sorry info@ you didn’t make the cut.
  4. Showed no personality whatsoever.
    This was often the case when it was a salesperson–excuse me “business development” person–from an agency. I use humor as a gauge for personality. Sue me. I’d rather have you insult me by trying to be funny than have you send me your generalized drivel about how great your company is. Who cares? What can you do for me? (This is also known as coddling my ego. Remember, everyone has one. No matter how self-deprecating they may seem.)
  5. Assumed you knew the project.
    I can’t tell you how many folks told me they could redesign the Return site. Um. I… Nevermind. Nuff said.
  6. Didn’t employ the techniques in which you claim to be expert.
    When someone is seeking an expert in a certain discipline, they generally want some indication that the person–at the very least–understands the discipline. I don’t claim to be fluent in Spanish because I can order off the Taco Bell menu. Don’t claim to be a CSS guru because you can write some styling code. Better yet, don’t claim to be anything that you can’t back up with examples. Actions speak louder than words. Lead by example. And any other platitudes you want to throw at that one. Those table-based layouts, folks? Like what I was writing back at the turn of the century–or maybe even last week? You’re out. But so am I. Admittedly, I’m no CSS guru.
  7. Thought you were more important than me.
    I can’t tell you how many times I started resizing type on some of the pages and the sites went all whackity whack. While I doubt the developer was intending to insult me, they did. Seems pretty narrow-minded to think that no one is ever going to resize the type on your site. Or pretty short-sighted. One of the two. Maybe both. I want you to care about my concerns. I want you to build stuff so that I find it useful. I am the most important. Me. Just ask my mom.
  8. Showed an attention to detail that was only skin deep.
    Resizing the type was my first test. If that seemed to go well–or even reasonably well–I did a little looking under the hood. Oy. When I say “elegant, standards-based CSS,” that means in the code folks. I don’t care if your site renders like a champ, knocks the eyes out the best designers, and seems to be super accessible, if your code looks like garbage. Code can be as beautiful as design. Or to take it to a more general-populous level, your resume can be elegant. I can’t think of anything much more code-like and standards-based than a resume. So I’m picking that.
  9. Called me.
    Where, exactly, in the gig description does it say to call me? I’m not a huge fan of phone calls. They’re hard to queue. And I get a lot of random calls. A lot. Most all of them are important. So I feel obligated to pick up. When you send me an email and then call me after I respond? Rude. If your code doesn’t speak for itself, no amount of your yammering in my ear is going to convince me otherwise. Gone.
  10. Didn’t have a clue.
    I literally pulled the Craigslist posting after about 6 hours. Because I was getting overwhelmed by this. But, these clueless types were still arriving. When I said “take advantage of our desperation,” did I say being desperate made me a complete idiot? If I’ve stipulated what I expect from the applicant, then maybe you should have something remotely in common with those stipulations. I’ve often been accused of having an overactive ego, but what unadulterated hubris drives some of these folks is beyond me. You would be shocked, my friend. Shocked at some of the stuff I saw.

So that’s my top 10, so far. And, admittedly, it’s pretty negative. Maybe once I get through all of these things and the project is off and running, I’ll sit back, smile, and write a hugs-and-kisses, right-things-to-do kind of post.

Maybe. Don’t hold your breath.

This was eye-opening for me because I usually have a first line of defense before I’m reviewing portfolios and resumes. Not this time. Ouch. I can’t imagine what a recruiter or HR person goes through on a daily basis. Oh my.

Posted in Employment, Kumquat, Perception, Recruiting | 18 Comments

Flipping the Switch

Posted on June 21, 2007 by Toby Lucich

I had lunch today with a former co-worker that has effectively “retired” at 39 (Jealous, much?). She is very much a Top 1%’er and a rockstar teammate that I know is sorely missed at our past employer.

My central question to her was, “What are you doing with your time? Where have you turned your drive and ‘compulsion to innovate’ now that you are out of the workplace?”

“It’s been an easy transformation,” she said. “After I got over explaining to others why this was the right shift for me, I got really focused on doing things that I wanted to do. I’ve become a very focused student (studying Chinese), a very competent quilter, and someone that enjoys my time and being able to cook and sit down to a warm dinner at night with my husband. Oh, and I was down to the capital to comment on legislation that was going on a few weeks ago.”

“Wow,” I said to myself, and have mumbled a few times this afternoon.

What amazes me in reflection is that this person is bridging the gap that so many folks dream about at retirement – transforming their lives and focusing their energies toward activities they are emotionally invested in rather than throwing energies at the problem de jour at work.

Clearly, I’m not ready for retirement. I’m not applying my energies as effectively to my personal affairs (hobbies, projects, interests) as I do in my professional pursuits. This sure seems like a rapid change that could leave folks at loose ends for a while.

Would you be ready to retire tomorrow? How effectively are you prepared to “invest” your time in matters and pursuits that are important to you?

Posted in Agility, Change, Exit strategy | 3 Comments

Desperately seeking CSS

Posted on June 19, 2007 by Rick Turoczy

Tired of hearing us complain about Kumquat? So are we!
If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem. Quit being part of the problem.

Here’s the gig description from 37signals, craigslist, and hypocritical.

We were going to try to make this gig post cute and pithy. But the fact of the matter is we’re tired. Sick and tired. Sick and tired and slightly perturbed. We’re in love with our idea and in hate with the current CSS. It—to put it bluntly—sucks. (If you don’t believe us, ask our developer.) We would much rather it didn’t. So, if you write elegant, standards-based CSS and have an eye for design, we could use your help.

Feel free to take advantage of our desperation. The right person can work where they want, when they want, for whatever price they want. We’re tired of sucking, so the most timely, qualified response gets the gig.

Please send any sites of which you’re especially proud to rick at returncorp dot com.

Are you someone? Do you know someone? Please put us out of our misery.

Say you read about it on More than a living and we’ll put you on the top of the pile. (Even though we’ve made that same promise to everyone else on every other post, we really mean it here.) You were always my favorite.

Posted in Kumquat | 16 Comments

Still Training?

Posted on June 18, 2007 by Toby Lucich

Are you holding yourself back?If you aren’t, you are becoming antiquated – so goes the straight-forward advise in It’s a “Sprint” not a “Marathon,” from Incentive Intelligence.

Each career cycle is getting shorter, which means that you need to be thinking about how you are expanding your bases of professional expertise. Being a niche specialist isn’t a long term strategy, and the days of broad generalist are over.

Think about the direction you want to take next, be it the one that best leverages your expertise or aligns to your passion. Be sure to find that organization that operates like an Alma Pater – this could be invaluable in your future career cycles.

Posted in Career, Reward, Risk | 2 Comments